forked from lix-project/lix-website
124 lines
6.5 KiB
Markdown
124 lines
6.5 KiB
Markdown
---
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title: "About Lix"
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description: "A strictly-better implementation of the Nix language."
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date: "2024-04-27"
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author: "Lix Team"
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---
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**Lix** is an implementation of the Nix _functional package management_ language. Originally
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codified by [CppNix](https://github.com/NixOS/nix/), the Nix language allows you to create
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packages that can be used for anything from **putting configuration files into place** to
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**declaratively managing an entire system**.
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That means that, with a few well-written Nix expressions, one
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can easily configure a system into a known state -- and the packages that are created this
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way are guaranteed to run _exactly the same way_ on any system of the same architecture.
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As a fork of CppNix, Lix is designed to be fully compatible with the original CppNix
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implementation -- but also designed to allow evolution of the language and tooling, so
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its developers can improve usability and ergonomics without sacrificing correctness.
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### Why use Nix?
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If you're not familiar with the Nix approach, we recommend checking out some of the
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[writing on the subject](https://nixos.org/guides/nix-pills/01-why-you-should-give-it-a-try.html).
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## Why Lix?
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The **Nix language** is used for a variety of applications ranging from individual computers
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to clusters of critical infrastructure. With this in mind, the Lix team has been working to
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provide a collection of necessary improvements over CppNix:
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- **Built for a community, not for a corporation.**
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Lix is built by a team of open-source volunteers -- and exists to provide a alternative to the
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commercial interests that have long plagued both upstream CppNix and corporate-authored forks.
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We're proud to stand by our open [conflict of interest statement](/team#conflicts-of-interest),
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and proud to listen to community voices on issues of sponsorship, direction, and moderation.
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- **A safe community for developers of all backgrounds.**
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Lix is developed by a diverse group of users -- and accordingly is committed to providing a
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space that's safe for users and developers typically underrepresented in technical projects.
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We take moderation seriously, and are committed to preventing bad actors from driving out
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marginalized groups.
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- **A correct implementation of the Nix language.**
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Recent versions of the CppNix project have introduced significant regressions -- so much so
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that the upstream [Nixpkgs](https://github.com/nixos/nixpkgs) team has opted to remain several
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versions behind. Lix is forked from the last truly-stable version of CppNix -- but has both
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introduced new features and backported a number of features from newer versions without
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sacrificing correctness.
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- **A more modern implementation of Nix.**
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Lix is designed for evolution of its codebase. Lix already uses the more modern
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[meson build system](https://mesonbuild.com/), which improves developer usability and decreases build times.
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Plans include a gradual, piecewise introduction of the memory-safe [Rust](https://www.rust-lang.org/)
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programming language -- to both supplement and replace sections of the current C++ codebase.
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- **A language with room to grow.**
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Unlike upstream Nix, Lix intends to be an evolving language -- a robust [language versioning](/roadmap)
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system will allow the language to grow and evolve without sacrificing backwards-compatibility or correctness.
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And room to grow means room for [usability and ergonomics improvements](#) -- both in the langauge and in
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tooling.
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## Frequently Asked Questions (relatively speaking)
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#### Q: Can I use my existing Nix/NixOS configuration?
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Absolutely. A primary goal of the Lix project is compatibility, which means that we very much support
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using Lix in any existing Nix or NixOS configuration.
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Check out the [install page](/install) to see how to use Lix with your existing configurations.
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#### Q: What are your plans for flakes?
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One of our primary goals is compatibility. While flakes are an experimental technology, their use is
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widespread enough that they've become a de-facto part of the Nix ecosystem -- and thus we consider them
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to be part of our compatibility guarantee.
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That said, we're not tied to any particular flake implementation. As Lix develops, we plan on adding an
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extension system for the tooling -- which will allow technologies like flakes, as well as new and different
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extensions -- to seamlessly act with the Lix core without needing to reside long-term in the Lix tree.
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#### Q: What relation does Lix have to the Nix Foundation, and to related projects?
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Besides being a fork of CppNix and an implementation of the Nix language, Lix is the
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effort of a number of long-time Nix, Nixpkgs, NixOS, and Tvix contributors and maintainers -- and has
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been developed in partnership with a number of prolific Nix-documenters, bloggers, and users.
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We welcome anyone who wants to develop for both Lix and another implementation -- including CppNix and _Tvix_,
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and our open-source implementation absolutely allows any developer to integrate our code into any
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license-compatible project.
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However, ___Lix does not fall under the NixOS Foundation umbrella___, is funded independently of the foundation,
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and is not in any way controlled by its leadership. Unfortunately, at the moment, this is vital for
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us to deliver on our promise of a safe and inclusive community.
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#### Q: If Lix plans to adopt Rust, what makes it different from Tvix?
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Unlike Lix, [Tvix](https://tvix.dev/) is a ground-up re-implementation of the Nix language in Rust,
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which shares many of the same modernization goals as Lix -- but also has a long way to go before it can
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reach feature parity (and parity in correctness) with the CppNix and Lix implementations.
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Lix instead plans a _top-down_, _piecewise_ approach to our Rust extensions and replacements -- which means
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that Lix already has feature-parity with -- and correctness exceeding -- the original CppNix.
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#### Q: What does the name Lix stand for? How is it pronounced?
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Like Nix, Lix isn't really short for anything. The name originally derives from the term _Layered Nix_,
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based on the premise of layering new language and tooling features atop a fully-compatible, rock-solid base.
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Lix is pronounced like _licks_ -- i.e. what you might do if someone handed you a delicious ice cream cone;
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which may or may not be stacked up with lambdas.
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#### Q: Can I help?
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Absolutely! We love new contributors, and are always looking for contributions in all of our areas -- and
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we value contributions of more than just code.
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Head over to the [contributing](/contributing) page to get started.
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